Health Canada estimates that on average 1,690 Canadians die and another 74,000 Canadians are injured each year at the hands of an impaired driver.

As the month of December gets underway the North Bay Police Service, Ontario Provincial Police, Military Police, Anishnabek Police Service in conjunction with their community partners MADD, North Bay Focus, Connecting Community Partners and Operation Red Nose want motorists to get the message that drinking and driving will not be tolerated.

“Having one too many is a crime once you get behind the wheel,” Inspector Mark Andrews, Highway Safety Division, Unit Commander – North East Region recently stated in a news release.

“Drivers need to understand that impaired driving is a criminal offence because of the risk and the danger it represents to other road users. We want everyone to arrive at their holiday destination safely.”

And to drive home the message law enforcement officers and their community partners hosted a Joint RIDE program Monday night in front of the Green Store on Trout Lake Rd.

The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health website notes alcohol and other drugs affect driving in a number of ways:


"When you drive, your hands, eyes and feet control the vehicle, and your brain controls your hands, eyes and feet. To drive safely, you need to be alert, aware and able to make quick decisions in response to a rapidly changing environment.

Alcohol and other drugs alter the normal function of the brain and body, and interfere with even the most skilled and experienced driver’s ability to drive safely. While different drugs can have different effects on driving, any drug that slows you down, speeds you up or changes the way you see things can affect your driving — too often with tragic consequences.

Alcohol blunts alertness and reduces motor coordination. People who drive after using alcohol can’t react as quickly when they need to. Their vision is affected, and may be blurred or doubled. Alcohol alters depth perception, making it hard to tell whether other vehicles, pedestrians or objects are close or far away. And because alcohol affects judgment, people who drive after drinking may feel overconfident and not recognize that their driving skills are reduced. Their driving is more likely to be careless or reckless — weaving, speeding, driving off the road and, too often, crashing. ”

The North Bay Police Service message this year is ‘Our Communities belong to all of us,’ and drive that message home every day for the month of December city police will be conducting a roadside checkpoint to do their part to Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere (RIDE). The checkpoints will be set up at anytime of the day and anywhere in the city.

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